Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons slammed New York officials for issuing commercial driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants, including an Indian national caught with an ID that didn’t identify him.
Lyons was left outraged after the now-detained truck driver Anmol Anmol was driving across the US with a license that read “No Name Given” before being arrested in Oklahoma last month.
“It’s really scary,” Lyons told Fox News’ “The Big Weekend Show” Saturday. “To see that on a driver’s license issued by the state, ‘No Name Given.” And the worst part, there’s a REAL ID star right up there in the corner.
“I don’t know about you all, but it was like going through a security clearance for me to get my REAL ID.”
Lyons was referring to the CDL license Anmol was found with after the illegal migrant was stopped for a routine inspection at an I-40 truck scale in Oklahoma.
The New York State issued ID only identified Anmol by his last name, with the first and middle name spaces filled in with the moniker “No Name Given.”
Anmol was arrested by federal agents after it was discovered he had crossed into the country illegally under the Biden administration in 2023, the Department of Homeland Security announced Friday.
Anmol was placed into removal proceedings after his arrest.
“I can’t believe we are giving illegal aliens, who have no right to be here, these driver’s licenses,” Lyons said.
REAL IDs allow holders to board domestic flights and enter federal facilities without a passport.
New Yorkers must provide several documents at the DMV to prove their identity, Social Security number, and residency in the state.
Officials have not revealed how Anmol obtained the ID, but the New York Department of Motor Vehicles confirmed to The Post that the license, issued on April 14 and set to expire May 26, 2028, was real.
“We have these sanctuary states that want to go ahead and try to just make it welcoming to these people who we don’t even know who they are,” Lyons said. “Again, these are CDL licenses. These people are transporting hazardous goods, materials at times. And in some cases, we don’t know exactly what they are doing.”
Lyons called the situation dangerous, claiming people have died from such drivers.
“Look how many American citizens have lost their lives because of individuals like that, who have these driver’s licenses,” he said.
Three Haitian migrants were killed when Indian national Harjinder Singh made a rogue U-Turn in an 18-wheeler on a Florida highway, causing the fatal crash back in April.
Singh obtained a driver’s license and work permit in California and was issued a driver’s license from both The Golden State and Washington State.
Before acquiring the licenses, Singh failed an English language proficiency test and a highway sign exam after the August 12 crash.
Lyons revealed the DHS has been working with local and federal law enforcement to crack down on such licenses.
“Homeland Security Investigations has dedicated to working with the state police departments and our own federal agencies to make sure we get these IDs off the street,” he said.
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